Is this the world of card dealers? Yada thieves!

For some reason, the blond-haired youth who heard her voice froze. He instinctively made way for Saotome Rei, who managed to escape. Then, he suddenly shouted inexplicable things like, "Holy crap, Princess Mary? I saw a ghost!?" and ran off in the opposite direction from Rei. Saotome Rei escaped and fled into the vast primeval jungle on Duel Academy Island.

Although she didn't understand what the other person was saying and felt that the other person looked somewhat familiar, Li didn't think too much about it. After all, time was of the essence. Although she hadn't been able to find that person at the first location, she had at least ruled out a wrong place. Next, she would go to the second location.

She pulled out a homemade map, crossed out the place she had just visited, and then looked at the second location that was relatively close. Any student familiar with the layout of the Duel Academy buildings would immediately recognize the second location she had marked as the Obelisk-Blue dormitory.

Instead of taking the main road, Saotome Rei used the clear starry sky, free from urban light pollution, to determine her direction. She walked through the jungle to avoid the students who had watched Jaden's duel with Kagurazaka on the coast and were gradually returning to their dormitories. Incidentally, she also avoided meeting Hayato and Yugi, who were taking a side path to the visitor dormitory she had just left.

"I wonder how that old man is doing. I remember him saying that he came to this island because of Yugi Muto's deck being exhibited at this academy, wanting to see that legendary duelist's deck up close." Saotome Rei muttered to herself as she walked through the woods. "But what's so special about a legendary duelist? Even Yugi Muto, in my heart, is far less important than that man!"

"Full speed ahead, Rei-chan! To find that person as soon as possible!" Saotome Rei cheered herself on with an expectant smile, full of energy.

However, what she didn't know was that from her unseen perspective, a blurry white shadow was looming over her and affecting her, which was one of the reasons why Jonouchi, who saw her, thought he had encountered a ghost.

Meanwhile, after Kagurazaka was defeated by Jaden, Professor Chronos tried his best to cover up the theft of Yugi Muto's deck and announced that visitors to the exhibition would have the opportunity to duel with Yugi Muto's deck. However, Yugi Muto's deck in Kagurazaka's possession still needed to be retrieved and put back in the exhibition hall for safekeeping.

However, Professor Chronos wasn't the only one tasked with putting the decks back in the exhibition hall and rearranging them; someone else was with him.

"This is so touching, Manjoume-kun. I never expected you to be so considerate of your teacher and come all the way to help me." Professor Chronos placed the reclaimed Yugi Muto deck in the box, held it in one hand, wiped away tears with a handkerchief, and looked deeply moved.

However, upon hearing Professor Chronos's words, Manjoume frowned and said, "You must have misunderstood something. I never said I was going to help you. In the end, the deck was stolen because you didn't take good care of it. If that's the case, then you should take care of your own business. I'm not going to help you put the cards back."

"Huh?" Professor Chronos was taken aback, not expecting Manjoume to say something like that. "But, but I have to say, if you weren't here to help me, why did you come back to the exhibition hall with me?"

"Needless to say? Of course, I'm here to keep an eye on you so you don't lose your deck again." As he spoke, Manjoume pulled out a fan from somewhere, with the words "一意専心" (I am single-minded) written on it.

(The title of the Third War, but the title of Manjoume)

"Besides, have you forgotten that I am also one of the people in the know? You wouldn't want Professor Hayato to find out that you failed to properly safeguard the cards and that someone stole the exhibition cards, would you, Professor Chronos?"

"Eek—!" With Manjoume holding a handle on him, Professor Chronos wore a pained expression. "If Principal Hayato finds out, my teaching career is over. No way! At least let me teach one more class to graduate, okay?!"

"Manjoume-kun, please, please don't tell the principal, I'll do anything!"

"Huh? You only think about yourself."

Although that's what he said, Manjoume soon changed his mind and said that he also wanted to go back to sleep early, so he would reluctantly help Professor Chronos arrange the cards and then went with him to the exhibition hall that hadn't been locked when they left.

The two, caught off guard, stood in the exhibition hall. Professor Chronos opened the box containing the game decks. Just as they were about to take out the decks, the lights in the exhibition hall suddenly flickered, as if the voltage was unstable.

"Strange, this isn't some dilapidated place. Could it be that the person in charge took a kickback when this place was built?" Wan Zhangmu said casually, glancing up at the flickering electric lights overhead.

"You wouldn't dare to talk nonsense!" Professor Chronos quickly said, "The academy's buildings are all constructed by the Seahorse Group's construction team, how could there be any quality problems? It must be that the 'Seven Stars' incident a while ago affected something."

Recalling the commotion and tremors that Kagemaru caused when he activated the "Seven Essences Release Gate," which were felt almost throughout the entire island, Manjoume thought it might be as Professor Chronos had said, so he didn't pay much attention to it.

Although Kagurazaka took a large number of cards, including all the commonly used cards and spare decks, totaling over a hundred cards, the exhibition hall was already set up by the school staff. Professor Chronos and Manjoume only needed to put the cards back into their respective display cases. With the two of them working together, it only took about ten minutes to rearrange the exhibition hall.

Of course, they couldn't restore the broken glass case for the time being, but Professor Chronos had already informed the school staff in advance to come early the next day to reinstall the glass. That way, when the card set was exhibited tomorrow, everything would be as if nothing had happened—except for Professor Chronos's wallet. After all, the new glass display case and the overtime pay for the school staff who came early could not be paid by the school; he would have to pay for it all himself.

Although he felt something was off, Wan Zhangmu watched as Professor Chronos closed and locked the exhibition hall door again, and even peeked inside through the keyhole, but he didn't notice anything unusual. He assumed it was just his imagination and left the exhibition hall with Professor Chronos to go back to the Blue Dormitory to rest.

But shortly after the two left, the red indicator light on the monitor at the entrance of the exhibition hall stopped flashing, and the entire monitor suddenly exploded and broke. Then, the locked exhibition hall door seemed to have been left open, and a gust of wind blew it open, leaving a gap large enough for one person to enter.

Chapter 1230 Crispy High School Student Fubuki

In front of the castle-like luxurious dormitory of Obelisk-Blue, a group of students from the Blue dormitory, who had been drawn by the commotion on the coast and had watched Jaden's duel with Kagurazaka, chatted as they walked towards their dormitory.

"Although he's a freshman and from the red dorm, that guy named Yuki Judai is really something else."

"That Kagurazaka guy is really strong too. Even though he's using Yugi Muto's deck, his performance is quite good. He's only a first-year student, but his strength is at least above that of a second-year student."

"Is he implying a training period of two and a half years? I've finally caught Little Blackie."

As one of them walked with his classmates, he was quickly scribbling something in a notebook. Seeing how focused he was, his companion asked curiously, "Shameimaru, what are you writing?"

"Didn't I join the news club? I think tonight's duel is perfect for tomorrow's school newspaper. I've already come up with the headline," said the blue-haired student named Shameimaru, showing off the headline. "What do you guys think of 'The Despicable First-Year Student Defeats Yugi Muto' with the subtitle 'The Deck User Kagurazaka'?"

"From 'The Monster of the Red Dorm' to 'The Unspeakable God of Luck,' and then 'The Despicable and Shameless Freshman'? At least your journalism club's code name has become 'human,' which sounds like a big improvement."

"But that's still a pretty harsh way to address someone, and isn't this just clickbait?"

"Just tell me if it's controversial enough, if it's enough to lure people in and make them click to read it?"

"All that's left is the controversy. Although the news department's motto is 'We will never report an event if the information is insufficient,' your reports are as full of exaggerated information and fake news as ever. Be careful, or someone will come knocking on your door."

"Are you kidding me? I'm super brave, okay? Do you think I'd be afraid of a mere first-year student from the Red Dorm?" said the unscrupulous reporter who called himself "the righteous Shameimaru".

Ahead of the group walked Marufuji Ryo alone. He appeared to be part of a group, but the students from the Blue Dormitory behind him were afraid of his "Caesar" reputation, and no one walked alongside him.

As they approached the dormitory building, Marufuji Ryo suddenly stopped, pulled his vibrating phone out of his pocket, looked at it with a puzzled expression, and then raised an eyebrow, revealing a look of surprise.

Looking around at his classmates from the blue dorm who had come back with him, especially the infamous gossip editor among them, Marufuji Ryo hesitated, unsure whether to say what he had been told in the text message he had received.

However, he then thought that even if he had said it, it seemed that only Tenjouin Fubuki would be affected in terms of reputation. So it was alright, and he no longer felt guilty.

“Fubuki is in trouble, I have to go see him.”

"Fubuki-senpai? What happened to him?" The academy's official explanation for Fubuki's disappearance has always been that "Fubuki went abroad to participate in a secret training program in seclusion." He only recently returned to the academy and then checked into the school clinic under the pretext of an accidental injury. He hasn't shown his face in the academy yet, but many of the upperclassmen in the Blue Dormitory already know that Fubuki has returned.

Recalling the contents of the text message, Marufuji Ryo said as calmly as possible, "Fubuki twisted his neck when he stretched, so he lay down playing on his phone, trying to hold back his laughter until his nasal artery ruptured. Then, when he went to the toilet, he sneezed, causing a herniated disc, and accidentally ruptured his tendon while flushing the toilet..."

At this point, Marufuji Ryo himself could barely suppress the urge to smile, and quickly said, "Anyway, I'm going to the infirmary now. When Professor Chronos returns, please tell him that I'm going to the school infirmary tonight and won't be going back to the dormitory. Thank you."

After politely asking the others for help, Marufuji Ryo hurriedly left the Blue Dormitory and quickly disappeared from sight, leaving behind the Blue Dormitory students who were still confused by Marufuji Ryo's words.

"Fubuki-senpai sounds so fragile, is he really that easy to get hurt?"

"I distinctly remember a third-year senior saying that Fubuki-senpai was known as the 'King' alongside Caesar as one of the 'Twin Pillars of the Academy'."

"I'm so conflicted. Should tomorrow's news feature the legendary Yukichi or the returning Emperor Fubuki?"

"Don't worry about it, let's go back to the dorm first. I haven't won my first Duel Monsters game today."

"Remember to pull me later, I have a good friend who's a first-year student with the big eyes."

Although it sounded unusual, the students didn't pay too much attention to the snowstorm. They just listened and then went back to their dorms as usual to play some games and then rest.

What was said in jest was taken seriously by the listener. A person wearing a hat leaned against the wall, listening to the conversation of the students in the blue dormitories outside, and a peculiar thought began to form. He tightened his hat, and after observing that no one was paying attention to him, he quietly walked into the blue dormitory and crept towards Marufuji Ryo's room.

Looking at Marufuji Ryo, although he walked away towards the academy in front of the other Blue Dormitory students, he soon returned to the vicinity of the Obelisk-Blue Dormitory from another direction after his figure disappeared from the sight of others, and he was not alone.

"Has someone infiltrated the island again? But Principal Hayato, why is he in my dormitory?" Ryo Marufuji asked, looking at Hayato beside him.

“Even I can hardly explain the specific reasons. Just know that the person who infiltrated the island this time wasn’t a dangerous individual, just a brat with a fangirl complex.” Hayato, who is already twenty-three years old this year, is fully qualified to call eleven-year-old Saotome Rei a brat, and he was the one who sent the text message that called Marufuji Ryo away. “That’s why I made you leave in front of the other students.”

"Because of the topic of Fubuki that you left behind, it will definitely become a topic of conversation for them, at least on their way back to the dormitory. It will spread enough to let others know what happened to Fubuki and that you went to take care of Fubuki and couldn't get back to the dormitory."

"That way, that brat will easily get the information that you're not in the dorm, and then she'll definitely be unable to resist her curiosity and break into her idol's residence. Then we can use this tree, which is neither too tall nor too short, just the right height to enter your room, to trap her like a turtle in a jar."

"There are just too many things to complain about, aren't there? Putting aside the fact that there just happened to be a tree that was designed to make it easier for thieves to operate," Tenjouin Fubuki couldn't help but say, pointing to herself, "Principal, you're just spreading rumors to lure out thieves, aren't you ruining my reputation!"

"Huh? When did you become famous?" Hayato raised an eyebrow and looked at Fubuki. "You've only been missing for a year, so the current first and second year students don't really know what you've done. But which third-year student doesn't know your true nature?"

"Principal, you've misunderstood me. Although others may see me as a playboy, Tenjouin Fubuki said in an exaggerated tone, "I'm actually a very loyal person, and I only love the women I'm currently pursuing."

"It's just that you fell for someone else quite quickly, isn't it? That's really outrageous. If I had a child, she would be much more well-behaved than you," Hayato said helplessly, seeing right through Fubuki's true thoughts. "Just tell me what kind of compensation you want."

“Principal, you’ll have to pay more,” Fubuki said with a grin. “It’s not anything else, it’s just that if Rachel Mackenzie from the Western branch knows about my various injuries, she’ll definitely come to the infirmary to visit me. Principal, could you help me smooth things over with Ms. Ayukawa Megumi and get her to help me with some decent disguise?”

"So you're trying to win over that little girl's sympathy, huh? Seriously, are you so confident that Riki Mackenzie, whom you only met once during the Duel Academy Exchange Tournament in your first year, still can't forget you?"

"I'm confident in my looks!"

Besides Ryo Marufuji, Fubuki Tenjouin, who had actually recovered long ago but had been lingering in the infirmary, was also brought to the Blue Dormitory by Hayato, so that Ryo Marufuji wouldn't be left alone and unable to block all the escape routes, allowing Rei Saotome to escape.

Hmm? What is Hayato responsible for? Needless to say, he is responsible for criticizing Saotome Rei after Marufuji Ryo and Fubuki have cornered her. What if he were to physically grab Saotome Rei and get filmed and falsely accused of child molestation?

He didn't want to end up like some scientist who could only move two fingers, being smeared after his death. That would be taking advantage of the fact that the dead can't speak—even though they can't speak while alive.

As the group was talking in the woods—mainly Hayato and Fubuki chatting while Marufuji listened in silence—Marufuji, who had been observing his dormitory room, frowned. He noticed a flash of light in the room, as if someone had opened the door, slipped inside, and then quickly closed it again.

However, before he could remind Fubuki and Hayato beside him, he discovered that the two who had been acting nonchalantly and seemingly oblivious to their surroundings had also noticed the strangeness in his room. In fact, the two, who were even more agile than him, had already started moving through the bushes and were approaching the tree that led to his room.

Although Fubuki still seems as unconventional as she was in school, her experience of falling into darkness and becoming "Darkness" over the past year has had a significant impact on her. And once a person grows up, they can never go back to their naive self.

As they climbed up the tree, Hayato led Fubuki and Ryo Marufuji to the balcony outside the room. They slightly lifted the curtain of the balcony and looked into the room through the closed glass. They could vaguely see a blurry figure rummaging through something near Ryo Marufuji's bedside table.

Instead of barging in and alerting the enemy, Hayato and Fubuki first went around to the balcony next to Caesar's room, then through that room to the indoor corridor, where they waited in front of Marufuji Ryo's door.

At exactly 8:30, as agreed beforehand, Fubuki burst into Marufuji's room, pushing open the door. Simultaneously, Marufuji entered from the balcony, trapping the intruder inside. Hayato, who followed, flipped the light switch as Marufuji and Fubuki approached the hat-wearing man, shouting, "You have nowhere to run!"

"Saotome—David Rabe?"

To Hayato's surprise, the person who appeared in Marufuji Ryo's room was not Saotome Rei as he had expected, but rather David Labbour, an exchange student from the Western branch campus.

The sudden appearance of Ryo Marufuji and Fubuki Tenjouin startled David Labborg, who was crouching down, causing him to jump up from his bedside table. Hayato's appearance immediately followed, almost causing David's heart to stop, leaving him no time to react.

Because he stood up, Tenjōin Fubuki and Marufuji Ryo were able to see what he was holding in his hand by the light. Those cards and the open bedside table door—David Labborg was actually stealing Marufuji Ryo's cards?

“No, it’s not what you think! I didn’t try to steal the cards!” David Labborg, his face pale—though he was white—stammered, “I just… I just…”

Hayato looked at him with disdain: "Tsk, I didn't expect you to be an admirer of Caesar, David Rabe. Taking advantage of Caesar's absence, you want to sneak into his room to get close to the cards he often uses, rub those cards with your cheek like a pervert, and imagine yourself being touched by Caesar?"

(Replace "Li" with "David")

David, whose face had just turned pale with fright, became furious upon hearing Hayato's words, his cheeks flushing red: "I'm not that kind of pervert! I just wanted to see Marufuji Ryo's deck composition!"

As soon as he finished speaking, he regretted it, because he had subconsciously revealed his true thoughts. Although that would have made him no longer a pervert, wouldn't he have become a despicable spy who spied on other people's deck compositions?

(One of the Seven Valian Emperors: Annoyed)

The Millennium Scepter in his arms silently turned into specks of light and dissipated. After guiding David Labb to tell the truth, Hayato said somewhat unhappily, "Although he's not a pervert, he's even more despicable. I never thought that a student from the Western Branch could do something like this."

"I hereby declare that you are expelled from the Western branch campus, and from all dueling academies."

Upon hearing Hayato's words, David Labb was momentarily agitated, but was immediately restrained by the nearest person, Tenjouin Fubuki, who glared at Hayato and said, "No, what right do you have to do that! I'm the top student at the Western branch! What right do you have to expel such an outstanding student like me!"

"Because I'm the principal of Duel Academy. As the principal of the Central Headquarters, my power is limitless," Hayato sneered.

Just then, Professor Chronos and Manjoume had already put the exhibited decks back into the exhibition hall and returned to the Blue Dormitory. Hayato then handed David Rabber over to Professor Chronos, asking him to find someone to keep an eye on him and take David Rabber, who was no longer a student of the Duel Academy, with him when the transport ship left in a couple of days.

However, Hayato was still quite puzzled as to why Saotome Rei hadn't come to Marufuji Ryo's dormitory and where she had gone instead.

As the saying goes, "Two flowers bloom, each telling its own story," where have Yugi and Jonouchi, who weren't with Hayato, gone?

It turned out that halfway there, because he had been playing games for too long and hadn't gone to the toilet, Jonouchi couldn't hold it in any longer and had to separate from Hayato's group. He just ran to the nearest building to find a toilet.

Feeling refreshed, Jonouchi walked out of the restroom, intending to leave the building to find Hayato and the others, when he noticed a faint sound of laughter coming from inside. A little afraid of ghosts but also incredibly curious, Jonouchi walked towards the direction of the sound, arriving at a corridor plastered with game posters.

The place Jonouchi randomly picked happened to be the exhibition hall that would be used to display game card decks the next day, and the laughter that Jonouchi found unusually familiar seemed to be coming from the central exhibition hall.

Through the half-open door, Jonouchi heard someone inside the exhibition hall mutter to themselves, "Fate! Fate has brought me here, and Yugi Muto's deck is right before my eyes, within my grasp!"

"According to the divination, no one will come here tonight, and I can freely tamper with these cards, take the Duel Academy students who duel with these cards hostage, and coerce the Duel King to prevent him from interfering with my plans!"

"The Magician upright, the Emperor upright, the Chariot upright—everything the Tarot cards indicate is foreshadowing that I will smoothly begin the initial part of my plan here, overcome obstacles, achieve my goal, and succeed!"